I am pretty excited about our month in Sicily, which begins in just a few days. I wanted to start writing with a “nuts and bolts” post about our itinerary. I think it’s a pretty good balance of sightseeing, tours and having no plans at all. So let’s get into it.

Palermo

We arrive in Palermo (the capital city of Sicily) on the 1st. Day and I screwed that up a little bit. Our month long rental doesn’t begin until the 3rd, so we have a rental for the 1st and 2nd, and then need to move to our month long rental on the 3rd. Both rentals are through AirBnB, great locations, right in historic, downtown Palermo. We have a great two bedroom, two bathroom apartment, for a month, for $900.00! Yep, you read that right, $900.00. If you haven’t used AirBnB yet, you should give it a try. Day and I have always been happy with our stays.

Food Tour with Streaty Food Tours

We have no plans until the 5th, when we do a food tour with Streaty Food Tours. We always, always book a food tour wherever we go. You spend 3-4 hrs walking the city, eating local foods, with a guide who has a wealth of knowledge about what to eat, and where to eat. I consider Day and I to be seasoned travelers, and we still love guided tours. They’re a great way to learn about the history, the culture and of course the food of wherever you’re visiting. Remember, you are a tourist, do some of the touristy stuff, it’s fun.

Matera

We’re going to sneak out of Palermo for a couple of days and go to Matera on the 12th and 13th, and be back in Palermo on the 14th. Matera was Day’s idea, but I’m pretty excited about it. Matera is on the mainland and involves a flight, but the flights only five bucks, so why not. Matera is said to be the 3rd oldest continually inhabited city in the world, tons of history and for awhile, the shame of Italy (it’s an interesting story). That’s all changed now, and it’s become a very popular destination. We’re staying at Sextantio Le Grotte Della Civita, a really cool hotel. I’m pretty excited.

Back to Palermo to Welcome K and J

We get back to Palermo and have a few days to ourselves before our friends K and J show up on the 16th. K and J are with us for two weeks. We’ll spend a few days in Palermo while they work out their jet-lag and settle in, and then, we do a week long tour of Sicily.

Tour of Sicily begins in Taormina

We’ve rented a car for a week, and with my new international driver’s permit, we head east to the seaside town of Taormina. I think we’re stopping in Cefalu along the way, for a bite to eat. We have two nights in Taormina, and it’s from here we’ll do a guided tour of Mt. Etna (if it’s not erupting when we get there). We meet our guide at the foot of the volcano, take a cable car up most of the way, and hike the last bit to the summit. Back in Taormina, Teatro Antico di Taormina, an ancient Roman amphitheater, offers some spectacular views.

Ragusa Ibla

From Taormina, we head south to Ragusa Ibla. Along the way, we may look for a winery that offers tours and tastings, but we have nothing planned. Ragusa Ibla is the ancient city of Ragusa that sits on a hilltop and is picture perfect. We’re staying at the San Giorgio Palace Hotel, which looks pretty nice. We’re here for two nights, and I think it’s just wandering around, sightseeing and of course, eating.

Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples

From Ragusa, we head west to Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples. There’s a really nice winery right outside Ragusa we may want to stop at on our way out of town. Once in Agrigento, we’re staying at the Hotel Villa Athena, and our rooms overlook the temples, that’s freakin cool! We have two nights in Agrigento as well. One day to explore the ancient Greek Temples and the rest of the time, I’m sure we’ll find something cool to do.

Back to Palermo

From Agrigento we head back to Palermo with K and J, who have five more days with us. We have nothing planned, perfect! Day and I thought if our food tour with Streaty Food was awesome, we may do it again with K and J. Day is looking into cooking classes for her and J. There is also options for a day trip to Trapani, but we’ll leave the end of the trip up to K and J.

Once K and J leave, Day and I have just two days left in Palermo, before we leave for Florence. Well, that’s our basic itinerary for Sicily. I think what I’m most excited about, is all our free time. We have so much time with no plans, an opportunity to just let days unfold, wander with no destination, sit and soak up the culture, La Dolce Far Niente, the sweetness of doing nothing.

My next post, will be from Palermo!
Luv ya,
Curly